Why Are Communication Skills, Skills for Life?

So, maybe your major is network engineering, CISCO, or web design. You don't really need to develop better written and verbal communication skills, right? WRONG. The communication skills learned are skills necessary for life.
 
What are the skills and qualities employers are looking for in job candidates?
 

 

Regardless of your major or career choice, today's organizations are looking for people who can listen, write, persuade others, demonstrate interpersonal skills, gather information, and exhibit well-developed communication abilities. Taking a basic course in communication is the first step in making yourself more marketable in the workplace. Incorporating these skills in all of your course work enhances your abilities.

  

Employers rate new-hire skills
     
Value Added Learning Includes:
  • Organize and express ideas clearly and appropriately
  • Master standard use of written and oral communication
  • Distinguish between the medium and the message
  • Listen, observe, interpret, and understand others
It is no secret that almost all Information Technology (IT) positions are only half technology. The remaining half is business! No matter at what level of IT position you may soon hold, you will interact with internal and external customers on a daily basis. You may possibly be the most technically competent professional your organization has to offer, but... if you are unable to communicate your knowledge and skills to others, your overall value suffers. The chart above illustrates what employers believe to be important, not just what I believe is important.

 
I have spent many hours searching Monster.com, investigating what skill-sets employers are looking for. The story remains the same for the following; help desk, hardware technicians, programmers, network engineers, and so on. Here is what they are looking for besides the obvious technical skills.

Communication Ability
• Ability to ask for what they need, providing clearly defined deliverables and due dates
• Ability to share easy-to-understand technical explanations about their own areas of expertise to others and a willingness to contribute to troubleshooting dialog with other team members
• Ability to articulate technical information clearly and simply to non-technical people
• Ability to communicate internal and external difficulties effectively and to propose solutions in a constructive manner
• Excellent communication and innovative problem resolution skills are necessary, as team members are frequently unavailable to meet as a group during normal business hours
 
Visit Monster.com and see for yourself what employers are looking for.

If you are now convinced of how critical communication is to add to your skill-set, take a look at how we accomplish these objectives in the classroom.
 

“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and the lightning bug”.  Mark Twain
 
"This site is authored and maintained by Randy Larson. It is not an official website of the Maricopa County Community College District, and Maricopa is not responsible for the contents of this site."